Forever Isn't Just A Word
by BeingASupernaturalWolfGirl
Summary: When Grant Ward chooses Skye and SHIELD over Garrett and Hydra, will he regret the decision to choose love over loyalty?
1. How About That Drink?

_Providence – timely preparation for future eventualities._ Never had a word seemed so prophetic than this.

As Grant Ward walked down one of the sterile looking hallways of Providence base, he almost laughed out loud. Of course Director Fury would name his super secret base that. His life as he knew it was coming to an end, and Grant had a decision to make. Would he keep working for John Garrett as a HYDRA mole, or would he come clean to Coulson and give him all the intel he had on Garrett? It would be so easy to serve the man he had respected since a teen, the man who had pulled him out of military school and showed him how to become a man, but was it loyalty he felt towards Garrett himself, or did he want to help the cause HYDRA supported? Did he really want to see SHIELD fall to pieces after everything he had done with them over the years?

He had grown to truly care about the team. Fitz and Simmons were nerds, certainly, but they had saved the teams hides more times than Grant cared to think about. May, well, she was a force to be reckoned with – and even after sleeping with her he still had a hard time figuring out what was going on inside her head. They were a lot alike in many ways. Coulson – well, Grant had come to respect Phil Coulson. He never thought he would, but Coulson had proven to be an effective leader.

Skye was, well, she was the main factor in his decision making. Since meeting her, Grant had tried to keep his mounting feelings in check. He had been given a mission, after all, and that mission did not involve falling in love, nor did it involve making connections. He had steadfastly refused to open up to anyone on board the Bus, but then this brunette whirlwind had come on board and blown that all to hell. She referred to him as the Tin Man and T-1000 on more occasions than one, and Grant wanted nothing more than to tell her everything about him – but he was a bad man, and she deserved better. He had told her she wouldn't like the real Grant Ward, and he was still certain about that fact.

As he came around a corner, he practically knocked Skye over as she came around the corner at the same time. "Hey," Grant said, a smile coming across his lips as he looked into her eyes. He would give anything to be able to kiss her right now, or run his hands through that silky hair of hers. Her eyes were trusting as she looked at him, her smile genuine as she spoke.

"Hey yourself. Since everyone else is out on some super secret mission, that leaves us with the place to ourselves. Well, minus Koenig, of course. I think it's safe to say he's pretty engrossed in a game of World of Warcraft with his brother, though. So... how about that drink?"

At that moment, she could have asked him to rope the moon for her, and he would have done it gladly. Reaching out with one hand, Ward touched her hair gently, pushing a stray strand back over her shoulder. "I'd like that. Think they keep any bottles of Jack Daniels down here? Maybe... maybe we could grab that a some glasses and go to my room?"


	2. In The Still Of The Night

Skye lay sleeping beside him, her arms looped over his body and her warmth sinking into his very soul. He let out a small sigh of contentment, his arms tightening around her as she slept. It had been two weeks since that night they first spent the night together, and still he hadn't found the courage to talk to Coulson. He had no doubt in his mind that he loved the woman sleeping in his arms, and he was certain she felt the same. Skye represented everything in his life that he had never had – happiness, goodness and love. He didn't deserve her, he knew that much was certain.

Planting a small kiss to the top of her head before sliding out of bed, Grant wrapped a nearby towel around his waist before going to one of the fake windows that were in almost all of the rooms here, watching as the moon moved across the sky over New York as most of the world slept. He knew he still had a decision to make, and it was getting easier every day. How could he leave Skye now? If he did, he would leave his heart behind with her. When Garrett had tasked him with infiltrating SHIELD, Grant knew he had to avoid making connections with anyone, which was why he came across as cold and unfeeling. He hadn't wanted to get close to anyone, hadn't wanted to compromise his mission in any way. Then he'd met Skye, and everything had changed. Now he couldn't imagine being anywhere else than right here.

A small sound had him turning partway, a smile coming to his lips as Skye moved towards him across the room, her slight frame wrapped in a sheet. As her arms came around his waist from behind and her lips placed a light kiss to the middle of his back, Grant said softly, "Hey. I was trying not to wake you."

Skye placed another kiss to his back before coming around him so she was standing in front of him now, a small smile on her lips before her brown eyes went to the picture Grant had been looking at a few moments before. "I got cold. That happens when your bed partner gets up in the middle of the night to mope about something he has no control over." Skye laid her head on Grant's chest as her arms went around him again. "You couldn't have changed anything that happened, Grant. HYDRA had been in our midst for a long time. They were firmly embedded, you know Coulson was right about that. There's nothing you could have done to stop it."

 _If only she knew_ , Grant thought to himself as he put his arms around Skye, pulling her body closer to his. "I know," he said softly, telling the woman he loved yet another lie. "I just wish I could have done something." Grant almost didn't get the words out as a thought stopped him, his arms tightening around Skye. "Remember when I told you you wouldn't like the real me?"

"I remember," Skye said softly, burrowing her face into Grant's shoulder more and inhaling his scent deeply. She had fallen so hard and fast for him that it scared her. Terrified her, really. There was so much she didn't know about Grant Ward still, and when he made statements like the one he had just made, well, it made her nervous. What could he have possibly done in his past to make him think he was a bad person?

Grant raised her chin up gently with one finger, so that he could look into her eyes deeply. "I just... I want you to remember this moment and how you feel about me right now, okay? No matter what happens. Just... remember that... that I love you."

Skye almost gasped as the words came out of Grant's mouth. He wasn't the type of person to express his feelings, so to say that she was pleasantly surprised was an understatement. In their line of work it was better not to form attachments to anyone, but they had been drawn together since the day they met. With a small smile, Skye said, "I love you, too. The tin man has a heart, after all. No need to go see Oz, the great and powerful. I'm shocked, Agent Ward." Skye kissed him, a soft, sweet kiss that needed no translating into words. When the kiss ended, she grabbed Grant's hand and turned towards the bed. "Come on, T-1000. Let's go back to bed and talk more about these feelings of yours." As Grant followed her, he knew his mind was made up. No matter the cost, he would tell Coulson the truth the next day. It was time for a reckoning.


End file.
